WES-BCA.EU

As part of the “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) project in the Neighbourhood South region”, a Regional Activity “Contribution to the Mediterranean monitoring and reporting programs for marine litter prevention and mitigation” (C1_REG-4) was prepared and delivered by the WES-BCA experts. [...]

WES-BCA held an online regional consultation meeting (15/09/2026) on the preparation and promotion of a Strategy for WEFE Nexus in the Mediterranean Source-to-Sea Continuum and its Action Framework, with the participation of all WES-BCA Focal points and key partners.
This was part of a regional dialogue advanced by WES-BCA Project through its activity in cooperation with GWP-Med and in synergy with other regional partners and processes, including those of the UfM and UNEP/MAP. [...]

Climate change and unregulated urban development are increasing stormwater-related in Lebanon. stormwater-related challenges. At the same time, rainfall runoff and stormwater remain largely unmanaged, representing an underutilized Non-Conventional Water Resource (NCWR).  
In Lebanon, the Non-Conventional Water Resources (NCWR), such as stormwater harvesting, treated wastewater reuse, and managed aquifer recharge, could substantially contribute to addressing these pressures, while supplementing conventional water sources.
Following the online kick-off meeting (05/05/2025), WES-BCA project organised a hybrid Workshop on its water activity “Design of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) in a Pilot area in Lebanon”, in collaboration of the Ministry of Energy and Water on the 8th of September 2026. [...]

How are global and regional policy developments shaping national responses to plastic pollution?

This question, among plenty others, were stated during the regional Webinar “Strengthening regional regulatory frameworks for plastics and circular economy alignment”.
The Webinar was organised by the WES-BCA project, on the 22nd of July 2026, to support the project’s 8 Partner Countries (PCs) for tackling plastic pollution, promoting sustainable alternatives and eco-innovation, in line with circular economy principles, regional commitments, and emerging international policy directions. [...]

Following the online Kick-off Meeting of the WES-BCA water activity “Recommendations for the development of regulations in support of water-related Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) implementation in Jordan”, a Roundtable was held in Amman, Jordan, on the 24th of June 2026, to support a consensus-building among the members of the Technical/Legal Committee (representing the Ministries of Environment, Agriculture, Local Administration and other institutions), regarding the findings of a Review of Jordan’s legal and institutional frameworks relevant to water-related NBS. [...]

The WES-BCA project organised an online kick-off meeting of the environment activity in Morocco, on the financial impact assessment and economic implications of the proposed EPR model, on June 24, 2026.
This WES-BCA activity is to support the establishment of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for PET bottles in Morocco, by defining a sustainable institutional and financial operational model fully aligned with the principles of the circular and green economy. [...]

WES-BCA project aims to improve the protection of the Environment by implementing 15 National and 10 Regional Activities in the MENA countries.
Keep up with our latest news for a Sustainable Mediterranean!
www.wes-bca.eu [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the environment activity “Prohibiting the free distribution of single-use items in Israel”, on May 28, 2026.
This WES-BCA activity is to enhance the management of plastic products in the country by taking measures to establish the steps for prohibiting the free distribution of single use items and especially plastic utensils. [...]

The May 2026 WES-BCA E-Newsletter was just published!
Take a look: https://www.wes-bca.eu/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WES-BCA-2026.05-E-Newsletter.pdf [...]

During the online 2nd Steering Committee Meeting (SCM), of the EU-funded project “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region”, on the 12th of May 2026, its progress, since the previous SCM (May 2025), was thoroughly reviewed and its Work Plan of 2026-2027, was presented and endorsed. [...]

The online 2nd Steering Committee Meeting of the WES-BCA project is to be held on 12/05/2026.
During the meeting, τhe progress of the project, national and regional activities and outreach campaigns related to Plastic Pollution, Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus, Biodiversity and Water Scarcity, to be delivered in the Mediterranean East and South, since the previous SCM (May 2025), will be presented and discussed.
Stay tuned for the latest news! [...]

Are you familiar with the so-called “Mediterranean paradox”?
During recent years, the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries have been particularly vulnerable to the simultaneous intensification of droughts and floods, due to the combination of higher temperatures, longer dry periods, and heavier rainfall and limited adaptive capacity, causing significant human, environmental and economic losses. [...]

As part of the “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) project in the Neighbourhood South region”, a Horizontal Activity “Support for WES-BCA Partner Countries (PCs) in preparing their 7th National Biodiversity Reports under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (C1_HOR-3) was prepared and delivered by the WES-BCA experts. [...]

This is a special day for WES-BCA project, as its Water Activities are underway: 8 National and 2 Regional in the MENA countries.
Keep up with our latest news for a Sustainable Mediterranean!
www.wes-bca.eu [...]

The proceedings of the Regional Conference on Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems Nexus in the Mediterranean Source to Sea Continuum: From Strategy to Action (24-26/02/2026, Nicosia, Cyprus) have begun.
The Conference is supported by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) as a key political platform to move the EU-UfM-UNEP MAP regional strategy on the “ WEFE Nexus in the Mediterranean Source to Sea Continuum” from policy to action. It is organized by GWP-Med and the Cyprus Institute, in synergy with PRIMA and the EU WES-BCA Project. [...]

The EU funded “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project held its Regional Webinar on the Mediterranean monitoring and reporting programs for marine litter prevention and mitigation, on the 3rd of February 2026.
This regional activity is to support its Partner Countries (PCs) in monitoring methodologies (for all marine matrices) that have been adopted by the Contracting Parties of the Barcelona Convention. [...]

The EU funded “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project held its regional online Webinar “Reporting Structures and Indicators for the 7th National Reports (7NRs) under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)” on the 21st of January 2026.
The webinar was co-organised with the Union for Mediterranean (UfM) in cooperation with the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), Directorate-General for the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf (DG-MENA), and Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) of the European Commission. [...]

The EU funded “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project held its online regional Workshop “Advancing Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems Nexus (WEFE) with emphasis on governance, policy and institutional arrangements: Towards an action framework” on the 19th of January 2026.
During the Workshop, key findings and recommendations from the WEFE Nexus background document, prepared by the WES-BCA experts, assessing WEFE policy, governance and institutional integration in Jordan, Lebanon, and Morocco and validated through an earlier consultation involving the three pilot countries, were reviewed. [...]

The January 2026 WES-BCA E-Newsletter was just published!
Take a look: https://www.wes-bca.eu/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WES-BCA-2026.01-E-Newsletter.pdf [...]

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The WES-BCA project organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity in Jordan, on December 16, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to review and strengthen Jordan’s regulatory frameworks in key sectors to enable the effective integration and upscaling of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for addressing water-related challenges, in line with national priorities and international commitments particularly the National Water Strategy 2023–2040 and the National Adaptation Plan (2022).
The activity is prepared with the collaboration of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation of Jordan. [...]

The 24th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Region of the Mediterranean (Barcelona Convention) and its Protocols is taking place on 2–5 December 2025 in Cairo, Egypt.
Yesterday, during the COP 24 Side Event the “EU-funded projects: a driving force for IMAP implementation and GES in the Mediterranean”, Professor Michael Scoullos, Team Leader of the WES BCA project, made a presentation of a part of the upcoming 27 activities that are currently developing in countries of the Middle East and North Africa (Nov. 2024-Nov.2027). [...]

Phasing out single-use plastics (SUPs) is indeed a challenging issue in the Mediterranean region.

The EU funded “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project is to support the development of a national legal framework for plastic waste reduction in Lebanon, focusing on initiating an EPR scheme for selected single-use plastics (SUPs), especially packaging waste.
Following a Kick-off Meeting held on 25/07/2025, WES-BCA organised a hybrid Inception Meeting of its Environment Activity in Lebanon on the 25th of November 2025, in Beirut. The meeting aimed to exchange on the current state of plastic waste management in Lebanon and the region, and to lay the groundwork for WES-BCA support in advancing SUP phase-out and the implementation of an EPR scheme through technical and legal guidance for drafting the relevant legal framework and preparing associated policy recommendations. [...]

Congratulations are in order!

The EU EyesOnLIFE Awards honored the 4 winners from Tunisia and Libya, young innovators whose creativity and commitment are turning vision into impact for a sustainable Mediterranean!

Active Citizens for Development association Lamia Hamrouni; Abdallah Elfandi; HydroHarvestFarms

Since last April, the WES-BCA project supported EU Neighbours South team in multiple ways:
Mr. Anis Ismail, WES-BCA Environment Key Expert, was a member of the jury, and all news items were disseminated via the project’s website and social pages. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity in Tunisia, on November 18, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to contribute to improving the climate resilience of agricultural systems in a pilot area, by developing concrete adaptation strategies for strategic crops (cereals and olive trees), based on identified vulnerabilities, available local resources, and existing knowledge, and by training technical actors to support their implementation. [...]

The WES-BCA project organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity in Morocco, on November 13, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to identify, evaluate and adapt technical and management approaches implemented internationally, likely to be transferred and applied in the Moroccan context, and to propose a concrete pilot project to test one of these solutions. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the Regional activity, on November 12, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to support the Mediterranean Partner Countries in enhancing the implementation of harmonised marine litter monitoring Programmes for all matrixes and to contribute to more effective reporting and mitigation measures aligned with the Regional Plan on Marine Litter Management under the Barcelona Convention. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity in Palestine, on October 20, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to support Palestine in improving the safe and sustainable use of non-conventional water resources by updating the national standard for treated wastewater reuse (TWWR) and developing a new draft standard for blended water use, in alignment with international good practices and national strategic priorities. [...]

The WES-BCA project organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity “Low-Cost measures for enhanced water efficiency and NRW reduction: follow-up to the WES action plan” in Algeria, on September 22, 2025.

This WES-BCA activity is to strengthen the technical and organizational capacities of the ADE Unit of Boumerdes to improve the management of Non-Revenue Water, by coupling the GIS operation, the reliability of field data, the establishment of a new comparative hydraulic balance sheet, and the optimization of monitoring tools and practices. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the environment activity “Pre-conceptualization and support to establish a Plastic Waste Recycling/Upcycling Hub near existing waste management infrastructure”  in Jordan, on September 16, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to promote innovation in the reuse, recycling, and upcycling of plastic waste materials in a selected area in Jordan by fostering collaboration with innovation drivers, entrepreneurs, and relevant stakeholders, in support of the implementation of the Waste Sector Green Growth Action Plan 2021–2025. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the environment activity “Support for EQA in preparing the Palestine 7th National Report to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity” in Palestine, on September 10, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to provide targeted support to Palestine in aligning with the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and Mediterranean biodiversity commitments, actively contributing to the preparation of its 7th National Report due in February 2026. [...]

Following the latest news on the EU EyesOnLIFE, a contest on circular economy that the WES-BCA project is supporting, we are happy to announce that the shortlist of EyesOnLIFE Civil Society and Eco Innovators was published.
Now it’s your call to vote for the 3 prizes till September 19, 2025 at midnight GMT
Vote for your favourite here https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/f43ea77a-e466-a95a-32e4-d4f605f2825a
Help decide which initiative wins the EyesOnLIFE Award! [...]

The WES-BCA project organised an online Consultation Meeting  “Advancing WEFE Nexus policies, strategies and their implementation:
a collaborative review of key findings and recommendations”,  on September 03, 2025.
This event is part of the WES-BCA horizontal activity to assist in the advancement of policy and institutional settings for the WEFE Nexus at country level and contributes to the implementation of the draft Strategy. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised an online kick-off meeting of the water activity in Lebanon, on August 05, 2025.
This WES-BCA activity is to enrich knowledge and know-how of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for storm and rainwater management and environment/biodiversity enhancement, to review the best management practices for NBS and to learn from the experience achieved from designing NBS in one pilot case in Lebanon at the feasibility level. [...]

The WES-BCA project has organised its first online kick-off meeting of the environment activity in Lebanon, on July 24, 2025.
WES-BCA is to support the initial implementation of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for selected single-use plastics (SUP) in Lebanon, with a focus on packaging plastic waste. [...]

Policymakers, experts, youth leaders, and stakeholders from across the Euro-Mediterranean region gathered to reaffirm their commitment to a just green transition at the 2nd edition of the Mediterranean Green Week of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) that successfully took place from 24–26 June 2025, in Brussels, Belgium. [...]

The WES-BCA project organised its first online kick-off meeting of the environment activity in Tunisia, on July 3, 2025. The objectives of the activity are to:

optimise the regulatory framework governing the ban on single-use plastic (SUPs) bags and the implementation mechanisms by proposing legal adjustments to clarify and strengthen the ban measures; support the industrial sector's transition to sustainable alternatives by identifying and proposing economic mechanisms to support the conversion to ecological solutions and encourage innovation, particularly in the packaging sector in Tunisia. [...]

A major side event “Scaling Up Solutions for a Plastic-Free Mediterranean” was organised during the UNOC3 (Nice, France, 10/06/2025), presenting solutions to tackle plastic pollution, promoting international collaboration and innovation, and driving towards a cleaner and healthier Mediterranean Sea.
In fact, an array of solutions to make the Mediterranean a pilot region in the fight against plastic pollution were presented and discussed. The event, which gathered a large number of parliamentarians, was moderated by Prof. Michael Scoullos, having in the first part Ministers as Keynotes Speakers: The Minister for Ecological Transition, Biodiversity, Forests, Sea and Fisheries of France, Ms Agnès Pannier-Runacher and the Minister of the Environment for Egypt, Ms Yasmine Fouad followed by a second part of panel discussion with renowned speakers. [...]

📢 WES-BCA activities are supporting gender mainstreaming efforts and the PRIMA Prize “Woman Greening Food Systems Award in the Mediterranean Region” is one of them!

PRIMA will award two winners with a recognition prize of EUR 10.000 each.
The Prize recognises and celebrates the outstanding contributions of the Mediterranean women in promoting sustainable and resilient food systems. [...]

A Declaration of the Ministers of the Mediterranean was made on the ‘Mediterranean Day’ event of the United Nations Ocean Conference (Nice, France, 10/06/2025).
The declaration is actually a reaffirmation of the Ministers’ common commitment to protect and preserve the Mediterranean Sea, an invaluable common good. [...]

The European Commission has published the European Ocean Pact.
The European Ocean Pact is a comprehensive strategy to better protect the ocean, promote a thriving blue economy and support the well-being of people living in coastal areas.
The Pact brings together EU ocean policies under one single reference framework, addressing the significant threats facing our ocean, our coastal communities, islands and outermost regions.
To tackle these complex challenges and reaffirm Europe's leadership in ocean governance, the European Ocean Pact introduces a comprehensive approach that builds upon existing laws and initiatives. [...]

The European Commission has published the Water Resilience Strategy.
The European Water Resilience Strategy aims at restoring and protecting the water cycle, securing clean and affordable water for all and creating a sustainable, resilient, smart and competitive water-economy in Europe.
It will support Member States in managing water more efficiently, both through implementation of current EU water legislation and through over 30 actions. Member States, regions and municipalities, but also citizens and businesses, are the key actors of water resilience. [...]

WES-BCA Project celebrates the World Environment Day by presenting you the WES video on Plastic Pollution and single-use plastics (SUPs), the impacts of SUPs use and how to address the problem!
Soon, you will hear on the WES-BCA Activities related to the protection of the environment and the restoration of biodiversity.

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The “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project  presented the 27 national and regional activities, trainings, study tours, workshops, consultations, as well as the large scale outreach campaigns to be delivered in the Mediterranean East and South, many of which related to Plastic Pollution, Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus, Biodiversity and Water Scarcity. [...]

The 1st Steering Committee Meeting of the WES-BCA project is to be held on 26/05/2025, in Brussels, Belgium. During the meeting, the work plan of 27 national and regional activities and outreach campaigns related to Plastic Pollution, Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus, Biodiversity and Water Scarcity, to be delivered in the Mediterranean East and South, will be presented. Stay tuned for the latest news! [...]

📢 WES-BCA project is proudly supporting the #EyesOnLife contest!
The #EyesOnLife contest is now open!
Launched by the European Union in partnership with EU Neighbours South, MedWaves – the UNEP/MAP Regional Activity Centre for SCP, the European Training Foundation (ETF), SPARK, WES-BCA, Interreg NEXT MED, and Expertise France, this regional initiative highlights and supports outstanding eco-innovations and civil society initiatives advancing the circular economy in the Southern Mediterranean. [...]

You can watch the 8-minute episode on the Euronews website along with the accompanying article, or on YouTube. It will be broadcast on Euronews TV over the coming weeks. [...]

The EU Green Deal 2024 Edition was just published.
The EU Green Deal New Edition focuses on the fundamentals of energy and climate policy as reformulated in the EU Green Deal. [...]

WES-BCA Project celebrates the World Water Day by presenting you the WES video “Help Save a Drop”!
Soon, you will hear on the WES-BCA Activities related to the management of scarce water resources. [...]

Welcome back dear followers! You might have noticed a slight change in our logo…
Indeed, WES project has ‘moved’ into a next 3-year phase with the name WES-BCA project! [...]

The EU funded “Water and Environment Support-Biodiversity and Climate Action (WES-BCA) in the Neighbourhood South region” project held its Kick Off Meeting, on Tuesday the 17th of December 2024, in Brussels, Belgium. [...]